During the 19-20 school year, we made a year’s worth of EFFL lessons for AP Calc AB. Since then we’ve gotten a ton of requests for BC lessons. This year I’ve been working with Karen Sleno to make some lessons about the big topics of Calc BC. Today we’re releasing the first three. Check them out!
These lessons are in our classic Experience First, Formalize Later (EFFL) format. This means each lesson begins with students working collaboratively in small groups through a sequence of carefully crafted questions that slowly build in complexity (Experience First). Following this activity, the teacher facilitates a discussion connecting students’ ideas with academic vocabulary and notation (Formalize Later). This approach encourages students to build strong math identities and take an active part in mathematical sense-making.
We believe in teaching students flexible thinking rather than rote memorization. Through our discovery-based activities and scaffolded questions, students uncover concepts and ideas on their own.